Summer Meeting 2013 - Going Green with Portland

Location

The 2013 AAPT Summer Meeting will be held in Portland, Oregon at the Hilton Portland and Executive Tower with weekend workshops at Portland State University.

Going Green with Portland

With memories of a very successful meeting in Portland in the Summer 2010, the American Association of Physics Teachers will be returning to Portland for its Summer Meeting July 13-17, 2013. The theme for this meeting is "Going Green with Portland." Portland State University will be host to our AAPT workshops conducted during the first two days of the meeting. The AAPT Two-Year College Community will host a one-day Tandem Meeting preceding the AAPT meeting. In addition, the AAPT meeting will host a High School Teachers Day. (Continue to check the AAPT website for the program details for these two events.)

Our eighteen area committees have organized a Portland program rich in sessions and workshops, which address a diversity of topics and interests for our group of physics teachers ranging from pre-college through research universities. I mention here just a few: the teaching of online courses, the authoring of interactive textbooks, the Next Generation Science Education Standards, best practices in educational technology, research in math education and education research at the boundary between biology and physics, green labs and activities, and a role playing workshop on the Pluto Debate. A special event with invited panelists will celebrate the 50th anniversary of "The Physics Teacher."During the past year, the physics education community and AAPT lost one of our leaders, Robert G. Fuller, Univ. of Nebraska, Lincoln. We will pause to remember and honor some of his many contributions during the Robert G. Fuller Memorial Session.

Dr. Alan M. Nathan, Prof. Emeritus, University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign will give a plenary presentation entitled "'You Can Observe A Lot By Watching'...Yogi Berra." Following Yogi's advice, Dr. Nathan will use high-speed video clips to highlight some of the interesting physics underlying the game of baseball. The talk will focus on the subtleties of the baseball-bat collision, the intricacies of the flight of a baseball, and many other things. Dr. Nathan will also lead a workshop, "Major League Physics – Using Baseball to Teach Physics." Additional plenaries will be given by our award recipients and invited scientists.

The Summer Picnic has long been considered a favorite networking activity for physics faculty and their families. Christine and David Vernier will again sponsor an exciting evening beginning with the traditional picnic spread along a city block. The Vernier picnic of 2010 is still being talked about and this one promises to be just as entertaining and filling. A demonstration show will follow and will be held within a charming old theater.

I have highlighted only a few of the special events planned for our Summer 2013 meeting. In addition, Portland has many attractions to entertain visitors, from tax-free shopping in its malls to outdoor activities such as hiking the many trails and seeing the local natural wonders. Begin planning now to attend the Summer Meeting in July 2013. Perhaps you should even consider adding an extra day or two to your trip!

Mary Beth MonroeAmerican Association of Physics Teachers2013 Program Chair and President Elect